Teton Port-o-Potty Owl Project gains ground

Owls have been getting stuck inside portable toilets on public lands across the country… But, Grant Teton National Park has found an innovative way to protect them.

The first report of an owl stuck in a “Porta Potty” at Grand Teton National Park came from a land manager who was performing routine maintenance. He took a picture of the owl and sent it to Amy McCarthy, executive director of the Teton Raptor Center.

McCarthy says the photo and all of the anecdotal evidence gathered from across the country since then has been compelling.

“There are many visitors to our public lands who have walked in to use the facilities and have seen little owl eyes looking back up at them,” McCarthy noted.

The Raptor Center and its volunteers have installed custom screens on all the toilet pipes in Grand Teton and distributed more than 1,000 screens in 11 other states.